Alternate Reality
by Sensa
Summary: A fate in which everything is different, yet the same. A dream that seems so far away. And a reality that is different from the norm. AU.


In the village of Konohagakure, an observer would see it as a relatively peaceful village where anyone would want to live because of how prosperous it looked.

However if one looked deeper than just the surface, they would see that there was a startling amount of orphans despite the fact that it was so prosperous.

This was because during the Third Shinobi War, many able-bodied ninjas were killed in the line of duty leaving behind their families. This compounded with the recent attack on Konoha by the Kyuubi which appeared out of nowhere had killed even more who were still recovering from the end of the war.

While Konoha was recovering pretty quickly despite all of this, it still didn't lower the amount of orphans that existed in Konoha.

This is the story of one such orphan.

* * *

Naruto was like any regular orphan in Konoha. Someone that was found in the aftermath of the Kyuubi attack on Konoha. He was just found inside the ruined remains of an orphanage that was destroyed by one of the Kyuubi's tails as it was swung in its general direction.

It was a miracle that he had managed to survive the collapse of the building at all.

Looking through his records, one could not tell who his parents were because he was just found at the doorstep of the orphanage with a blanket with his name sewn on it and there were no birth certificate for him at any of the hospitals. Though with his dark blonde hair streaked with black and crimson along with his naturally tan skin, many speculated that his parents must've been civilians from outside Konoha since he exhibited no exceptional amount of chakra that would be present in children born from a ninja clan and despite his exotic hair colors, he was declared as a normal orphan.

When the matron of the new orphanage he was sent to saw him, she decided that he would have to be put on the back burner because there was no end in sight with all the new orphans being found every day and they were much younger than Naruto so they required more attention.

So Naruto's life from babyhood to childhood was one where he learned to fend for himself as best he could since the matron seemed to be running ragged with all the other orphans she had to take care of.

At the age of five he had learned to read and write from observing the older kids at the orphanage do it when the matron was giving them their lessons. Because he was a child at the time, they had dismissed his presence in the lessons as a child's curiosity to something new whenever they saw him hovering over the things they were learning.

However when he reached six and declared his intention to become a ninja, the matron was shocked that he had already filled in the forms needed to sign up for the Academy and the orphan stipend fund that he would be placed under until he became a full-fledged ninja. All that was left to do was get the matrons signature and he would be set.

The matron was torn. On one hand she wanted to sign it so that she would have one less orphan to take care of, but she was unsure of whether or not Naruto could take care of himself.

In the end, the need to relieve even a little bit of her stress won out and she signed the papers.

The same day, Naruto moved out of the orphanage with what little belongings he had and into the apartment provided to him by the village for orphans who wanted to become ninjas. It was near the darker side of town, right next to the red light district, but close enough to the Academy that it wouldn't take him long to get there.

* * *

Today was the first day of the Academy and Naruto found himself their extremely early and nervous.

Who wouldn't? After all today marked the start of his journey to become a ninja. When he had originally said he wanted to become a ninja, it was so that he could get out of the stifling atmosphere that was the orphanage he lived in, he didn't have any well thought out plan where he wanted go or do after he became a ninja.

To him, becoming a ninja was the easiest way to get out of the situation he was in at the orphanage. Being provided with an apartment was a bonus, but now that he stood in front of the Academy that was connected to the Hokage's tower, he was seriously reconsidering whether his decision to become a ninja was a good idea or not.

As more and more kids showed up with their parents in tow, Naruto moved towards the shadows provided by the Academy to observe as happily smiling children continued to show up with their parents who were smiling at them indulgently.

He felt a pang of envy at not being able to experience a parents love like that but it quickly disappeared as a teacher had shown up at the front door of the Academy and started ushering the kids in.

Once inside, the group of kids were quickly split into different classes. Walking into his assigned classroom, he was greeted with a storm of kids all screaming at the top of their lungs trying to be heard by their neighbors.

Moving himself to the back of the room out of habit, he sat down and watched as his fellow students became friends with each other or childhood friends hugging each other at being reunited in the same class.

Eventually a teacher came in and gradually the class quieted down.

The teacher launched into a speech about how the classes were divided up into classes for civilian and classes for children who had ninja parents and what would be covered in their first year of the Academy and a whole slew of other stuff.

Naruto had already gotten lost about what the teacher was talking about when he started talking about chakra. Evidently the class was lost too if they're looking at the teacher like he was an extremely interesting specimen that they had never seen before was anything to go by.

The teacher as if sensing the the feelings of being utterly lost by the class flushed in embarrassment and just turned to face the board and started writing something on it. Turning around he noticed that no one was copying down what he was writing and looking at the tables which were devoid of anything, he quickly headed back to his desk and started passing out blank sheets of paper with a pen to each student.

The class just stared at the pen and paper like all of life's answers would appear on it and the teacher just sighed and said "Copy down what I'm writing."

The class let out a collective sound of understanding and started copying down what was written on the board.

The teacher just sighed and muttered something about not being used to teaching civilians.

* * *

Naruto looked on as the crowd below him all speculated with each other about what would be on the Genin exam they would be taking soon. It had been seven years since he had first set foot in the Academy. He now wore a white dress shirt that was buttoned up until the collar under his black jacket which was rounded off with black shinobi pants that reached his ankles and a pair of black boots. Even though it had been seven years he was still unsure of what he wanted to do after becoming a ninja. Speaking of which once he became Genin, he would no longer be eligible to receive the orphan fund stipend and he would be forced to work for money. Which brought him to the next issue of him having spent all of his savings on a custom weapon suited for his style.

Dragging his mind away from his money troubles, he observed as his classmates all did their thing before the exam started.

Aburame Shino just sat in his chair as stoic as ever, never once trying to interact with the people around him. Dressed in a white long coat and blue shinobi pants and a pair of sunglasses that concealed his eyes, it seemed that he was conversing with the bugs he was always seen with. Naruto wouldn't mind being put on a team with him, he seemed like someone that was reliable in any situation.

Inuzuka Kiba was a braggart in his opinion. He seemed to always challenge everyone to fights to prove that he was the 'Alpha'. With his brown hair that seemed completely untamed and a gray jacket with a hood lined with fur and a pair of black shinobi pants, Naruto felt that he kind of looked like a hobo. It was amusing that he acted out the pack mentality of dogs so well. Thought with his dog partner Akamaru always nearby, Naruto guessed that was a given.

Hyuuga Hinata was staring out the window with a bored look on her face. He didn't know her that well but two years ago she was pretty shy near everyone, but now she looked like she was ready to bite someones head off if they bothered her, especially Kiba who was always trying to impress her. With her light blue hair that was slowly lengthening from the lack of trimming and a beige colored coat that was unzipped, showing off the fishnet she wore beneath her jacket with her quickly developing bust along blue shinobi pants. Naruto secretly wondered what happened to her to have cause such a drastic change in her personality when he distinctly remembered her being a shy and meek girl. Though she wouldn't be a bad teammate since she was strong. Of that he was certain.

Nara Shikamaru was someone he wouldn't mind either since he seemed pretty relaxed about everything around him. With a hairstyle that vaguely resembled a pineapple and dressed in a vest with a fishnet shirt below it and brown shinobi pants. Though he was definitely reliable when the situation called for it as seen when he came to Chouji's defense when he was made fun of. Though he was always seen sleeping or attempting to at least.

Akimichi Chouji was always seen with Shikamaru, it was like both were attached at the hip. One wouldn't find one without the other, though if he understood their dynamics right. Shikamaru was the brain while Chouji was the brawn. He would be a fine teammate as well if Shikamaru was with him. Though one had to be careful not to use the word 'fat' when he was near. Dressed in a green jacket over a yellow shirt with the word 'meat' emblazoned on it, he wore brown shinobi pants which was rounded off with a white scarf around his neck which reached down to his hip.

Yamanaka Ino was a tag along to Shikamaru and Chouji, wherever they went she was never far behind, though she seemed to be extremely shy since when someone tried to speak to her she would immediately move behind Shikamaru or Chouji. Naruto didn't really have a final opinion of her. Her hair was tied in a high ponytail and, Naruto secretly wondered if she had a fetish for purple since her shirt and knee length dress were both the same color along with the arm warmers she wore.

Haruno Sakura was also someone of note. Born from a civilian merchant family, she decided to become a ninja for some reason. He wasn't really familiar with her, though he had heard she was often picked on a lot in the past, she seemed to have grown up to be extremely shy.

Then there were the celebrities of the class.

Uzumaki Mito, daughter of Kushina Uzumaki who was a decorated Jounin that everyone talked about in the village. Though no one knew who the father was, everyone speculated it was the Fourth Hokage since they were extremely close in the past and it was around the time that the Fourth Hokage got married that they drifted apart and Mito was born. With her distinctive red hair that reached the small of her back and her yellow battle kimono she wore, she definitely stood out in a crowd. Definitely someone who was strong with her speculated ancestry and it helped that she was trained by her mother as a child.

Namikaze Mema, the son of Namikaze Minato and Yukino from the Nadeshiko Village. Born like an exact replica of a teenage Namikaze Minato save for the black hair he received from his mother and three whisker marks on both sides of his face, he was dressed in black muscle shirt and black shinobi pants rounded off with a noh mask that hung from his hip that vaguely resembled something with three eyes. Despite his pedigree he was somehow the dead last of the class which took skill since Kiba was gunning for that position pretty hard in his opinion. Though considering Namikaze Memna never bothered to show up for class unless he wanted to, it was inevitable he would be dead last. While he would no doubt be a good teammate, Naruto didn't think they would get along.

Finally Uchiha Sasuke, one of the last few Uchiha's that were left alive in Konoha when his older brother, Uchiha Itachi went on a rampage and killed over 90% of the Uchiha clan in one night. Though there were rumours that he had to have help of some sort in order for him to have carried out the killing in only a single night. He had made it his sworn goal to avenge his clan and had trained since five years ago to fulfill his dream. Though when anyone asked if he would kill Itachi or not he would not answer, he would just repeat 'that man' over and over again when he was asked. With hair that vaguely resembled a duck's behind which was a course of many jokes from the jealous side of the class, he wore his clan's blue trademark high collar shirt with a small Uchiha fan emblazoned on the back and white shinobi pants. As a teammate his strength was undisputed since he was the rookie of the year.

As the classroom door slid open once more, their teacher Iruka walked in with the assistant teacher Mizuki right behind him. Turning to face the class, Iruka cleared his throat.

"Alright class, soon we'll be starting the Genin Examinations, first we'll be going through the paper test and then after lunch we'll move onto the practical part. So I hope that you're all ready."

Moving over to the desk on the side Iruka started gathering papers that had been stacked up high.

The class slowly started to settle down since none of them wanted to experience the Big-Headed Jutsu that Iruka had invented for classes that were too noisy. Soon enough he started passing out the papers and everyone got to work immediately.

When Naruto saw the first question, his brow twitched. 'Who was the First Hokage and what was he famous for?' Seriously who asked that on a test to become Genin?! Writing down his answers he made sure that he didn't get everything correct. Not enough to fail but enough that he would be in the middle of the class in terms of rankings.

When that was over, the class dispersed for lunch break and when Naruto heard some of the students say how hard the test was, he felt like banging his head on the table.

Once lunch hour was over the class reconvened in class and they were then led out to the courtyard where they would have a spar with Mizuka or Iruka to determine the Taijutsu part of their test. Immediately afterwards they did their Shurikenjutsu part of the test and they found themselves back inside getting ready for the Genjutsu portion and Ninjutsu portion.

Slowly the class was called one by one to the next room. Those that passed returned happily with forehead protectors displayed proudly on their foreheads, necks or forearms while those who failed walked past the classroom and out of the Academy.

When his name was called, Naruto got up and slowly walked into the next room, he was the last one on the list after all so there was no need to rush. He had to stop himself from reflexively breaking out of the Genjutsu he was immediately put in when he entered the room since he didn't want to stand out. So he waited for a bit to dispel the Genjutsu. When he did, he saw Mizuki write something on a clipboard. Walking in front of Iruka, he waited.

"Alright Naruto, I want you to Henge into anyone you want followed by a Kawarimi with anything in this room and then three Bunshins."

Nodding, he transformed into some white haired person that he saw every now and then near the red light district near his apartment. When he did though he heard both Iruka and Mizuki do a double take before they looked him over. Seeing Iruka say next, he switched with a chair that was a few feet away. And then made three clones that were barely passable in his opinion.

When he was done, he waited for Iruka to give the final verdict.

Eventually Iruka nodded. "Alright Naruto, you passed. Not with the best grades but definitely in the middle."

Nodding to him, he walked over to the forehead protectors and picked up one that was attached to a black cloth. Tying it around his neck, he made his way back to into the classroom and sat down at the back like usual.

Iruka stepped back into the classroom and faced the class.

"Alright class, all of you here have all passed the Genin exams. Remember to hand in your Genin registration within three days since four days from now you'll all return here to find out what teams you've been assigned to. I wish you luck in your future and it has been a pleasure to have been able to teach you."

Bowing his head to the class, Iruka walked out.

The class erupted into chatter when he did, friends hugging each other as they happily cried to themselves about becoming Genin. The kids from clans just got up and started leaving the room. Naruto got up to follow since he had nothing left to do here.

Walking out of the Academy, Naruto passed the parents that were outside consoling their failed children or waiting for their kids who had passed to come out.

Naruto made his way into the crowd and started heading in a specific direction. He eventually arrived at his destination, and pushed open the door to the store, he heard the doorbell above him chime. Soon enough a tall broad chested man stepped out of the doorway leading deeper into the store. The man seeing Naruto let out a sound of recognition.

"Ah, you're here. I'm guessing from the forehead protector on your neck you passed?"

Naruto nodded.

"Haha! In that case let me go get your order. I tell ya kid, I ain't never done something like this before so you'll have to test it out and get back to me." With that the man moved back into his shop and returned just as quickly with a box in his hands. Opening it, Naruto found a pair black gloves covered in black plates inside of it. Quickly putting them on, he slowly started moving his fingers.

"Got it. Were you able to incorporate what I asked?"

"Of course! Who do you think I am? Just because I've never done it before doesn't mean I won't learn."

"Hmm..." Naruto continued to move his fingers. After a while he nodded his head. "Seems to be working as we planned out. I'll have to test it out before I get back to you."

"Sure thing kid. I'm always open to learning new things. Something like this was actually pretty fun to make."

"Alright. Later Ryu-san." Naruto started walking towards the exit while waving his black plated gloves behind him.

"Hahaha! Later brat, be sure to visit if you get anymore good ideas!"

Leaving the store Naruto decided to make one more stop before he headed home. Moving through the crowds in Konoha, Naruto thought of who he would possibly be paired up with as teammates and who his prospective sensei was. He knew from reading the Shinobi handbook that most teams were balanced out except those that were specifically meant to fail or were specialized teams. He had even purposely scored in the middle of the Genin exams since it was generally accepted that the Rookie of the Year, the best kunoichi of the year and the dead last would form one team which meant three of Konoha's most prospective ninjas were being put on a team. Then most likely Shikamaru, Chouji and Ino would be put on the same team since the Shika-Ino-Cho combo was quite famous and would possibly be recreated in their offspring, but still that meant that he had 26 other possible students he could be paired with.

Shaking his head of such useless thoughts, he arrived at his destination.

Walking into the hospital, he moved to the reception desk. Standing in front of the receptionist, he asked, "Excuse me, do you know where Rei-sensei is?"

The receptionist looked up and instantly recognized who he was. "Ah, Naruto-kun, Rei-sensei is currently in her office. She'll be making her rounds soon, so if you hurry you'll catch her before she starts."

"Ah. Is that so? Thanks." Waving a quick goodbye to the receptionist, he quickly moved towards his destination taking care to not run. Arriving in front of a door, he knocked twice and waited for a response.

The door opened and in front of Naruto stood a doctor. Quickly bowing his head at her, he said, "Thank you Rei-sensei for teaching me. Now that I've become a ninja I no longer think have the time to show up to help."

Straightening himself up, he was greeted to the sight of Rei-sensei with a hand in front of her face while shaking her head. "Is that all you came to do, because I distinctly remember us throwing you a goodbye party the last time you came."

"Even still I wanted to thank you for all that you have taught me."

"You can thank us by never getting yourself stuck here since I don't think anyone would like to see you in one of these hospital beds. Now shoo, I have work to do." With that she walked off but not before patting him on the shoulder.

His task done, he decided that now was a good time to grab a bite before he headed home. He would probably finish his Genin registration tomorrow.

* * *

Arriving at Ichiraku Ramen he frequently went to. He ducked under the folds and was instantly greeted to the smell of heavenly ramen. However he was surprised when he saw Uzumaki Mito and Uzumaki Kushina both sitting on stools eating ramen. While he heard they occasionally came to this stand, he didn't think he would actually see them here.

He was snapped out of his stupor though when Teuchi the owner of the stand called out to him.

"Oh! Naruto! You want your usual?"

Taking a seat further down from the Uzumaki duo, he nodded. "Gimme two actually, I'm feeling a bit famished."

Teuchi stared at Naruto for a moment before he smiled. "Ah... I see you passed the Genin examination today."

"Yep and I'm feeling indulgent today." Naruto smiled back before looking around. "By the way. Where's Ayame-san. She generally works right about now."

"Ah, she's out making a delivery. Why? Want her to serve you like usual?" At this Teuchi narrowed his gaze at Naruto.

Naruto quickly shook his head. "No, not at all just curious is all."

"Wahaha, well your order will be ready in a couple of minutes." Teuchi then turned his head back towards the stove.

Naruto left without a conversation partner turned around in his stool and observed as people passed by the stand through the gaps in the flap. He was interrupted though when he heard someone calling his name. Turning his attention back to the counter, he backed up when he saw Uzumaki Mito sitting right next to him and staring at him.

"Uh... yes...?"

Mito just stared at him intently.

"You're Naruto from my class right?"

Naruto scratched his cheek nervously. "Uh yes. I am."

"Oh good. Are you here to celebrate your passing of the Genin exam?"

Naruto nodded. Though he was peripherally ware that Uzumaki Kushina was staring at him as well.

"Hey, hey. Did you think that the Genin exam was super easy?"

Naruto was not sure what to say. "Er... why do you ask that?"

"Isn't it obvious? It was like the test was made so that everyone would pass and the only ones that would fail would be idiots. I mean why do we need to know what accomplishments the First Hokage had, or who was the Second Hokage. All that is completely useless to being a ninja!" Mito rattled out.

"Er... when you say it like that I guess it's super easy if you listened to any of the lectures that the teachers went over."

Hearing him agree with her, Mito turned back to her mother.

"See mom! Even he says it was super easy!"

Kushina just sighed and nodded indulgently at her daughter before they resumed eating their ramen with her daughter doing the same. He was shaken from his observation of the duo when Teuchi returned with his orders of ramen and he forgot all about the duo in favor of savoring the taste of his celebratory ramen.

* * *

The next day, he arrived at the Hokage tower to have his photo snapped for his ninja registration. Though he made sure to keep his hair covered with his hood. It wasn't that he was self-conscious, it was just he didn't need someone seeing his distinct hair colors since that would make him easily recognizable if he ever got famous.

Though it might've seemed arrogant or paranoid of him. He just couldn't shake the feeling off.

Once that was done, he started looking for an empty training grounds he could use in order to test out his new weapon he got yesterday. Arriving at a training grounds with a dense forest, he made his way in and pulled his gloves on. Channeling chakra to it's fingertips he was satisfied to see a translucent wire emerge from them. Using his chakra to further manipulate the wire, he slowly crafted shapes out of the wires to see if they were performing as planned.

Once he was properly satisfied with that, he channeled more chakra into the fingertips and the wires all moved out to cover the forest he was in.

That was how he spent the last three days before he was due to show up at the Academy to find out what team he was being put on, testing his weapon and familiarizing himself with it. Though he did remember to jot down possible upgrades to it.

When the fourth day rolled around, Naruto found himself seated in the back of the class once more. As he waited for the class to start showing up, he thumbed through his copy of the ninja handbook that he had been given all those years ago. It's pages were worn showing that it was thumbed through regularly.

Naruto continued reading through, never once noticing that the class had slowly started filling up. Though he did notice that when Uzumaki Mito walked in, she seemed to zero in on him before moving over to Namikaze Menma and starting a conversation with him. Naruto stared at Namikaze Menma's back for a few seconds before turning his attention back to his book, he listened with half an ear as the class continued to be filled up.

When Iruka walked in, he closed his book and looked up as Iruka cleared his throat. Though it seemed that a majority of the class didn't seem to hear it. When he did it again and still no one stopped chatting, Naruto quickly plugged his ears knowing what was coming.

Sure enough Iruka's head magnified by at least ten fold and even with his ears covered he heard, "SHUT UP!" reverberate across the room. The class immediately quieted down. Iruka cleared his throat again.

"Now class. Today is the day you'll all be split into teams. From now on, they'll be with you every step of the way. In a sense, they'll be like a makeshift family for you. Now Team 1 is..."

Naruto tuned him out, unless he heard his name, he wasn't really interested. Though he tried listen with half an ear. When his name was called he just knew that he was part of Team 6 under Uzumaki Kushina. It looked like he had missed who his teammates were, but he was more curious as to why Uzumaki Kushina was their sensei when he was sure she wanted to be the sensei of her daughter. Then the notable students of the class were put on a team and as expected, Namikaze Menma, Uzumaki Mito and Uchiha Sasuke were put in Team 7 under Hatake Kakashi, while Hyuuga Hinata, Aburame Shino and Inuzuka Kiba made up Team 8 under Yuuhi Kurenai and of course Nara Shikamaru, Akimichi Chouji and Yamanaka Ino were put in Team 10 under Sarutobi Asuma completing his theory of the creation of the Shika-Ino-Cho formation.

"Now that all you know what teams you're on, I wish you luck in your future endeavors and I would like you to know once again that it was a pleasure teaching you. Now class will be dismissed early for lunch so that you can grow accustomed with your new teammates that will be with you every step of the way. After lunch your Jounin sensei will be here to pick your team up." Saying that, Iruka left the classroom as everyone got up from their seats and started moving to their new teammates.

From the corner of his eyes, he could see Mito drag Menma and Sasuke out the door while Team 8 all gathered around Hyuuga Hinata and Team 10 started walking out the door too, no doubt headed to the roof like Shikamaru always did during the lunch hour.

Naruto just sat where he was observing the the class below him. Since he didn't hear who his teammates were, but he had no doubt that they would eventually come to him if he didn't show up himself. Sure enough Haruno Sakura slowly walked up to him as if scared that he would bite her.

Timidly she spoke out. "Er, Naruto-san how bout we have lunch together with Ami-san since we're a team now?"

Naruto glanced at Ami, someone he wasn't very familiar with since she didn't really stand out other than the fact that she always had a group of friends around her wherever she went. But looking at her now, she seemed unusually isolated now that her friends were all put on different teams. Looking back at Sakura, Naruto nodded and got up from his seat. Walking over to Ami with Sakura timidly following behind him, he asked her, "Ami-san, how about lunch together now that we're a team?"

She shot a glance at him and then glanced at Sakura, before she slowly nodded. Together the trio walked out of the classroom. Though when they did he paused causing the duo behind him to stop as well. Turning back to them he asked, "Do you have any preferences for what you want for lunch?"

Both shook their heads, so Naruto lead them to the dango shop that was near the Academy, seating himself near the back of the shop he ordered a couple plates of dango. Turning back to the duo who was sitting opposite him who were trading wary looks with each other, Naruto couldn't help but feel that they must've known each other in some way.

He asked as much. "Ami-san, Sakura-san, do you two know each other?"

Both stared at him with a look of surprise before Ami whispered, "Tch, as if I would know this forehead girl."

At this Sakura retreated into herself.

Naruto narrowed his eyes. Now that he was teammates with them, he could properly observe them. As Ami had implied, it seemed that Haruno Sakura indeed had a large forehead that was hidden behind her fringe, combined with her exotic pink hair that reached the small of her back and jade-colored eyes that radiated fear combined with Ami's remark, he could easily surmise that Ami must've been one of those who picked on Sakura in the past making Sakura into what she was today. Though with her pink cheongsam that was low cut around her knees, she really stood out in a crowd. It must've been why she was picked on so much since she seemed to radiate fear if one looked at her too long. It didn't help that all that pink she wore made her stand out like a sore thumb.

Then there was Ami, who had just as exotic dark purple hair that stopped just above her shoulders with a small amount sticking out of the left side of her face that reached her neck and in her light purple blouse and dark blue dress that made Naruto internally question whether or not she was suited to be a ninja at all. But since she passed the Genin exam, she must've been decent though. He wasn't familiar with her since he rarely interacted with her at all, the only instances he saw her was in class with her friends though mostly with Fuki and Kasumi.

He was shaken from his observations as their order of dango arrived and they all started eating it. When that was done, he faced his teammates.

"Well, now that we've had lunch I guess we should move onto what Iruka-sensei told us to do: grow accustomed to our teammates."

Ami snorted and spoke with a condescending voice. "Like I need to know anything about forehead girl or you for that matter. Now that I think about it. Aren't you quite talkative? Where's the quiet person who never paid attention in class or spoke up even when the teacher called on you?"

Naruto didn't even bat an eye "He's sitting in front of you contemplating whether he can get away from murdering a possible teammate."

Ami flushed red while Sakura giggled to herself but immediately stiffened when Ami glared at her.

Naruto sighed internally at the display. It seemed that their team was off to quite a rocky start with a bully and a victim put together.

"Well introductions are in order. So I'll start off. My name is Naruto, no last name. I'm an orphan and I guess I like reading. My goal as a ninja... I'm not even sure. Now why don't you try?"

Ami looked at Naruto like he was dumb. Sakura however timidly started speaking. "E-eto, M-my name is Haruno Sakura, I'm from a merchant family but me and my parents don't really get along...?"

Naruto raised a brow. "Why are you saying it like a question?"

Sakura flushed red, but she continued. "I guess I like reading too, and my goal as a ninja is to become independent from my parents?"

Both Ami and Naruto were silent at how unsure she sounded. Then Ami muttered something under her breath that he couldn't hear but Sakura could because she shrunk into herself again. "Well I guess that's nice that you have a goal as a ninja compared to me eh, Sakura-san?"

Naruto then turned to Ami. "What about you Ami-san? Now that both me and Sakura have gone, only you're left."

"Tch, fine fine jeez. My name is Ami, I don't like my last name so I won't say it. My family get along okay, not the best but okay. As for my goal as a ninja, I don't have one. My family just pushed me into becoming one since everyone else was doing it at the time as well. There, you happy?"

Naruto nodded. "Very.", then Naruto's eyes narrowed.

"Now, why don't we discuss the possibilities of _why_ we were put on this team."

Sakura and Ami let out dual sounds of surprise.

Eventually Sakura spoke up. "Eto, Naruto-san, what do you mean by why we were put on this team?"

Ami spoke up as well, "Yea, what forehead girl asked."

Naruto sighed at the dual looks of confusion on their face. "You have both read the shinobi handbook that was given out a few years ago right?" accentuating his point, he brought out his worn copy.

Ami looked at it and scoffed. "Like I would read something as boring like that."

Sakura however nodded, "Er, yes I read it, but what does that have to do with...?"

Sighing again, Naruto felt like this was going to be a common occurrence with these two. Flipping towards the end of the book, he showed them what he was talking about.

"Here read this. It says right here that all teams were constructed under the thought of one specialization for each team under these categories or were made specifically to fail since they didn't have the aptitude to be ninja. From what I could see of Team 7 and 8, Team 7 is to be an assault team of some sort with all the firepower they have. Team 8 is most likely a search and destroy team since they have the means to track and destroy whatever target they want. Do I need to say anything about Team 10 at all?"

From their silence, he guessed the answer was no. "Now, what I'm wondering is what specialization are we? I have no clue as to what our abilities are since I, as Ami-san put it, a 'quiet person who never paid attention', have no idea what you people are good at."

It was Sakura who spoke up. "Eto, I was told by Iruka-sensei that my chakra control was superb and that I should pursue an apprenticeship at the hospital when I have time."

Naruto's eyes widened at this. Then Ami spoke up. "I don't know about forehead girl but my chakra control is decent as well, though I was told to do the same too."

Naruto palm met his face at this. Sakura looked worried at his behavior while Ami snarked, "What? Finally gone insane?"

Dragging his hand down his face Naruto muttered out, "We're most likely a medical relief team since both of you have recommendations for learning medical ninjutsu from the teacher and I already completed my one year apprenticeship."

Both Sakura and Ami let out sounds of surprise again. But Naruto wasn't paying attention. "Ahh... this is so depressing, all that work and I get put in a team for medical relief? Geez why did I bother working so hard."

Though Sakura and Ami didn't know what he was saying to himself Ami couldn't help but retort, "You? Worked hard? Is that a joke? You barely paid attention in class at all and you're not even in the upper tier of the class rankings."

Flipping to a different page on the shinobi handbook on the table he tapped on it and motioned for them to read.

Both Sakura and Ami muttered it out as they read, 'A shinobi must never show their full power to the enemy.'

After reading that, both looked up at him in shock.

"Yes, yes is there anything you want to say for yourselves?"

Ami just let out a "Tch, this proves nothing." while Sakura looked lost as to what to think.

Looking at the clock on the wall Naruto noticed the time. Clapping his hands together he drew the attention of both his teammates. "Alright lunch hour is almost over, so let's head back to the Academy to meet our sensei."

The trio quickly paid for their food and made their way back to the Academy. Once there, they all sat at the same table as Naruto in the back waiting for everyone to return. Slowly the class returned from whatever they were doing. When the whole class was assembled Iruka showed up again, but this time as he entered, a crowd of others followed him. Immediately Naruto picked out the prominent red hair of Uzumaki Kushina who was to be their teams sensei.

"Alright class, your sensei will call your team out in order. After they do, please follow them out." After Iruka said that, one of the ninjas called out for Team 1 to follow them and soon enough it was their turn.

When Uzumaki Kushina called for Team 6, they all got off their seats and followed her out the door. As they moved out of the Academy making their way through the crowds towards the training grounds, Naruto could see that their sensei looked a bit depressed.

Arriving at training ground six which contained a clearing with logs tied down in the middle and a forest behind it with a river running down through the side. Their sensei turned around and motioned for them to sit which they did.

Clearing her throat she started speaking, "Well I'm sure that you know that I could be your new sensei, but first lets start off with introductions."

Naruto glanced at his teammates and saw that both looked confused about the part of 'could be your sensei'. He was shaken from his musings as Kushina-sensei started speaking.

"My name is Uzumaki Kushina. My likes are ramen and my daughter Mito. I dislike lying and cheating bastards." Here her eyes narrowed. "My goal for the future is to make you three into proud ninjas of Konoha I guess."

None of the trio said anything. "Now, how about you?" Pointing at Ami, who looked like a frozen deer, she shakily started speaking.

"My name is Ami, I don't like my last name so I won't say it. My likes are my family and friends. I don't have any dislikes except for forehead girl over here." Sakura retreated into herself again and Kushina-sensei visibly frowned. "My goal for the future... I don't really know."

"Hmm." Kushina-sensei then pointed at Sakura, "You're next."

"Eh, I- I'm Haruno Sakura. My likes are reading and flower arrangement since it lets me relax." Again Ami snorted. But Sakura continued. "My dislikes are bullies and my parents since they don't want me to become a ninja and they fight a lot. My goal for the future is to move out and live on my own...?"

Kushina-sensei nodded and then pointed at Naruto. "You next."

"My name is Naruto, no last name. I like reading anything that catches my interest and ramen too. My dislikes...? I'm not even sure. As for my dreams for the future I'm still looking..."

"Hmmm..." Kushina-sensei looked deep in thought. "Well as far as introductions go, this wasn't bad, it wasn't good either. Though I did expect you three to be more excited about finally becoming ninja. Well not officially at least."

Sakura timidly asked, "What do you mean 'officially'?"

"Exactly what I mean. While you have passed the Genin exam, ultimately the decision whether you three become official ninjas is up to me."

"Eh?" both Ami and Sakura let out while Naruto's eyes narrowed in thought.

"You see, if everyone who passed the Genin exam could become official ninjas, then we would just have way to much ninjas joining at once. We're Konoha which prides itself on our teamwork. So we have to cut off the ones that can't show teamwork with their teammates. So we generally hold a test with those who passed the Genin exam to see if they have what it takes to make the cut."

All three of them were in shock from the unexpected information but Naruto recovered quickly. "Now that you've told us this, won't it defeat the purpose of the test. Now that we know what needs to be done, we should be able to breeze through this."

Kushina-sensei smiled. "Alright, sure, you three just have to each land a clean hit on me in order to pass. I will only dodge, nothing else. Ready. Set. Go!"

No one moved. They just stared at each other. Eventually Sakura spoke up. "Er, do we begin now...?"

"Of course!"

Still no one moved.

"..."

"..."

"..."

"... well? Come on?"

Only then did they start moving. Ami moved to engage Kushina-senseis in a taijutsu battle with a quick jab to the face while Sakura hesitated for a second before she tossed a couple of shuriken at Kushina-sensei. Both attacks were neatly sidestepped but that didn't prevent Ami from moving back to engage Kushina-sensei in taijutsu with Sakura joining her seconds later. Though they occasionally missed their strikes and nearly ended up hitting each other, though when they did Ami would glare at Sakura like it was her fault and Sakura would curl into herself, but then both would return to trying to land a hit on Kushina-sensei.

While this was going on, Naruto was just observing and looking for any weak point in Kushina-sensei's stance that he could exploit. However he couldn't just grab a hit and be done, in order for them to pass, they each had to and a hit on Kushina-sensei, so that meant he would have to go in for a quick strike of his own before he started helping his teammates. Or... he could go for restraining her. Pulling out his plated gloves, he quickly pulled them on and slowly started channeling chakra into them and causing the steel threads to emerge which he then directed into the ground and slowly began weaving his trap. Hopefully his teammates would keep her attention focused solely on them so that he could weave his trap unhindered.

Though after five minutes of both Sakura and Ami trying to land a hit on their sensei, they were gasping for breath while Kushina-sensei still looked fresh. Glancing down at his gloves, he noted that he was quickly running out of Steel threads and his trap was only halfway complete. Frowning, he made a note in the back of his head to find a way to expand the capacity of the steel threads in his gloves when he met up with Ryu-san again. For now though, he needed some help.

"Sakura! Ami! Get over here!"

Both turned their heads from where they were recovering and Kushina-sensei looked over from where she stood with a curious eye. Whether she could see the translucent steel threads emerging from his fingertips he wasn't sure but he needed to tell his teammates the plan he just thought up. Both Sakura and Ami moved back towards him while he kept an eye on Kushina-sensei.

Once they were within range, he motion them closer while keeping an eye to see if their sensei could hear them or not.

"Alright, I have a plan but I'm going to need some help to pull it off."

Sakura and Ami both glanced at each other before Ami motioned for him to continue.

"Right now I'm setting up a trap to restrain Kushina-sensei, however the I'm running into a shortage or material so I need both of you to herd her closer to me but make sure she doesn't get too close since she could probably see what I'm up to which would then defeat the purpose of my trap."

Ami spoke up. "And just what kind of trap are you making while not moving at all? It sounds more like you just want to be lazy and get a hit in while we're working hard." Though Sakura didn't say anything it looked like she agreed.

Sighing to himself, he controlled two of his threads to tie themselves around their wrists. As if feeling a disturbance, both glanced at their wrists where they saw translucent threads slowly tying themselves around it.

"Believe me now? I'm preparing a trap that will restrain her, that's why I need you to distract her from noticing the trap I'm laying. Once she's restrained we can easily get our hit in. When you feel a tug, retreat since I don't want you getting caught up in it."

"Fine. But if this fails I'm going to kill you." Ami turned her attention back to Kushina-sensei who was just observing their little meeting and Sakura seemed indecisive, unsure of whether to trust his plan or not. Naruto sighed internally. Working with this team was going to be hard if they couldn't even trust him to help them.

However she was forced into action when Ami jumped in again to engage their sensei in taijutsu while trying to implement their plan. Sakura also joined to help and when Naruto saw how they tried to forcefully herd Kushina-sensei towards him, he couldn't help but sigh out loud.

They weren't being subtle at all. They were just screaming that they were trying to trap her with how hard they were herding their sensei towards him. But nevertheless, he got to modifying his original trap as quickly as possible.

As Kushina-sensei was pushed closer to his position his speed in laying his trap increased since he didn't have to spread his threads over longer distances anymore. When she reached the center of his trap, he quickly triggered it while simultaneously tugging on the threads wrapped around both Sakura and Ami's wrist. Both understood immediately and retreated backwards. Naruto made sure that a path for them to escape the trap was in the direction of their retreat and the moment they cleared the safety margin, he quickly closed the gap to prevent their sensei from possibly getting out the same way.

All around the clearing numerous Steel threads lashed out of the ground and drew a complex pattern above their heads. All of which headed towards the opposite side of the clearing they had emerged from. Their sensei who showed a look of surprise when the Steel threads emerged smiled and was engulfed in the sphere of Steel threads that surrounded her in the shape of a semi-sphere. Pulling his hand upwards, he completed the technique by pulling the threads together tightly and watched as the threads all drew inward until the shape vaguely resembling a human was shown to be captured inside of it.

When that was complete, Naruto let out a sigh of relief since he was unsure if that would actually work or not. As one, all three of them made their way closer to the trap that contained their sensei. When they got close enough they each landed a clean hit on her restrained figure, taking care not to hit too hard since she was still their sensei.

However after they did so, their sensei vanished in a puff of smoke. The threads that once held their sensei went slack now that the target it held was gone.

"Eh?!"

"What?!"

"How?!"

Sounds of surprise echoed around the clearing as their sensei went up in smoke. Immediately after it disappaered they heard laughter coming from the forest. Turning as one to face the forest, they watched as their sensei slowly emerged from the thick foliage of the forest.

"Impressive. While you three already knew what you needed to do, I'm still impressed that you managed to catch my clone. Especially since it was only dodging with Chunin speeds."

The three of them could saying nothing as they looked at their freed sensei who was looking at them in amusement.

"Well, you three did manage to work together to catch me even if the plan you used needs a lot of work. But in the end you passed. Congratulations, you three are now officially Genin of Konoha."

All three of them were still in shock to be able to comprehend what was going on. Eventually Kushina snapped them out of their daze when she clapped her hands together. "Alright, tomorrow show up here at nine AM, we'll start our first mission as a Genin team then. Ja ne." With that she vanished in a flicker of leaves leaving three dumbfounded Genin and one clearing filled with threads that resembled a destroyed web.

Eventually Sakura broke the silence with a whisper. "...We passed...?"

That was the signal for both Ami and Naruto to snap out of their own dazes. Eventually Ami spoke up. "Of course we passed. Were you expecting anything else forehead girl?"

Sakura didn't seem to hear the comment about her forehead since she just kept repeating 'we passed' over and over again until she started laughing her head off which seriously freaked Ami out. Noticing what she had done, she flushed in embarrassment before retreating into herself again.

Naruto was wondering about what had just happened. Kushina-sensei had called whatever they fought a clone, but weren't clones suppose to be illusions only? Frowning thoughtfully to himself he wondered if there was technique that made a solid clone.

He was shaken from his thoughts when Sakura started laughing and couldn't help but let out a smile. He passed. He was an official Genin of Konoha now. Turning to his teammates, he asked, "Want to go get some celebratory ramen? It's my treat."

Ami and Sakura let out affirmative sounds.

Naruto led them towards Ichiraku Ramen. Walking into the stand, he called out, "Yo Teuchi-san, ramen for three!"

Teuchi who was behind the counter nodded. "Coming right up!"

Sitting down on a stool near the corner both Ami and Sakura took up the open stools beside him. "Better tell him what kind of ramen you want or else you'll be stuck with miso.", Raising his voice Naruto called out, "Gimme a Beef ramen!"

Ami and Sakura started looking at the choices to see what flavor they wanted. In the end Ami chose Shrimp ramen and Sakura chose Chicken ramen. As they waited, Teuchi started a conversation with Naruto over the counter.

"Naruto, shouldn't you be with your sensei right now? I heard that today was your first official day as a Genin."

"We already met out sensei. She just gave us a test to see if we're qualified to be a team." Here Naruto smiled.

Teuchi seeing the smile leaned forward before whispering. "Does this mean you passed the official Genin exam?"

Naruto's eyes widened along with Sakura and Ami who both started staring at Teuchi.

Naruto lowered his voice and whispered back, "How do you know about that? I thought it was a secret?"

Teuchi snorted. "Lots of people failed it and some came here when they were depressed and talked about. That's how I found out the test was two-fold."

Naruto nodded at this. "Well my team passed. Right Ami-san? Sakura-san?"

Ami and Sakura nodded at this, both looking proud of themselves.

"Haha! In that case, this is on the house. Think of it as a congratulations on passing the exam!"

Ami and Sakura thanked Teuchi who waved it off saying, "If you want to thank me, just come more often. I'm always looking for new customers."

Teuchi then turned his attention to a customer that just entered leaving them alone.

The three sat in silence as they quietly waited for their ramen to arrive. Sakura eventually broke the silence. "Er, Naruto-san?"

Naruto glanced at her. "That trap you used. Does it have a name?"

A brow shot up at this. Ami turn her attention to the conversation as well. "Yea, does it have a name? After seeing it, it looked like something that took lots of practice to use."

"A name huh...? I guess it would be called Kumo Amimono."

Ami wrinkled her nose. "'Spider web'? Really? How unimaginative."

"Well it was designed to catch whoever was in the center of it whenever its activated. It would catch them and tie them up tightly to prevent them from leaving just like how a normal spider web would work. Though if we're criticizing each other now, I'll be the first to say that it was amazing to see that you could actually engage Kushina-sensei's clone in taijutsu with a dress on."

Ami flushed at this. "Hey what's that suppose to mean?!"

"Exactly what it's suppose to mean. Kunoichis generally don't wear dresses to engage enemies in taijutsu. Maybe a combat kimono, but definitely not a dress like you're wearing."

"Pft. How would you know anyway? You're not a girl."

Naruto had nothing to say to that so he conceded that point to her.

Throughout this exchange Sakura watched as both her team mates verbally fought each other. Smiling to herself, she watched as her teammates shifted their talking to the viability of wearing a dress for taijutsu. She was shocked though when Ami started speaking to her though. "Hey forehead girl, back me up on this. Tell this idiot that wearing a dress in taijutsu works perfectly fine."

Sakura was in shock. Here was Ami who always picked on her in the past when they were children and when they both joined the Academy, but now she was asking her for help on backing up her point. Ami must've realized it herself since she had a look of horror on her face when she turned to face Sakura. Both stared at each other and when Ami opened her mouth to say something, Sakura instinctively curled into herself.

Whatever she was about to stay tough was cut off when Naruto cleared his throat and said in a low voice. "We're officially teammates now, so we're expected to get along. If we show disunity on a mission, it's liability that can get used killed. Understood?"

Ami and Sakura straightened as Naruto spoke in a low voice. It was as if he was commanding them to get along.

Ami turned to face Sakura while her face went through all manner of emotions where she eventually held out a hand. "Truce?"

Sakura looked at it before grabbing onto it with her own. "Truce."

Facing Naruto, Sakura said, "Regarding Ami-sans point, wearing a dress in taijutsu is perfectly fine. I mean I wear a cheongsam and its like a dress too, you don't see it getting in the way for me at all."

Naruto opened his mouth to argue but was interrupted by Ami who cried out, "See see! Even Sakura says so. Hah you're outnumbered, so obviously you're wrong!"

Before he could refute even that, Teuchi showed up with their orders of ramen and all three of them forget the conversation they were having in favor of savoring the taste of the ramen with their suddenly hungry stomachs.

When they were done, it was about four PM and they decided to disperse for the day since they were tired from all the physical activity they had done today. Well, Ami and Sakura were tired, Naruto was still full of energy. Both Sakura and Naruto waved goodbye to Ami after escorting her home.

The duo slowly made their way towards Sakura's home is companionable silence. As they approached it though, he felt Sakura shift uneasily. At the front door, Sakura stepped in front of him and said, "Thank you very much for today Naruto-san. If you hadn't spoke up at the ramen stand when you did, me and Ami-san would've never been able to become friends today."

Naruto waved it off. "It was nothing, I was just making sure that nothing messed with our team dynamics was all."

"Nevertheless thank you." Bowing to him, Sakura made her way into her home.

Once the door closed, Naruto turned around and made his own way to his apartment. Today wasn't so bad he thought. He was put on a team that was dysfunctional at the start, but over the course of the day, they had grown accustomed to each other and now they were all friends. That was good enough for him. Though when he thought about it, he should really stop by Ryu-san's store to ask him if it was possible to expand the capacity of his gloves. It seemed that the current capacity wasn't good for complex traps that used up a lot of Steel threads. Though forming them were much easier when compared to back when he had to unravel the wire himself instead of it being automatically being by his gloves as he channeled chakra into it.

Taking a detour, he headed towards Ryu-san's store. He had some time to kill, so why not go there and brainstorm possible improvements to his gloves?

* * *

The next day, Naruto arrived five minutes before nine AM and he saw that Ami and Sakura had already arrived and they both seemed to be talking amicably with each other. Though it looked like Ami still had trouble not calling Sakura derogatory names and Sakura seemed to be trying to stop instinctively backing up whenever Ami spoke.

Walking up in front of them he nodded to them. "Morning."

"Morning to you too./ Morning Naruto-san."

"So today's our first mission. I took the liberty of doing some research on that last night."

Ami and Sakura looked interested in what he had to say.

"I hope both of you didn't think that we'll be doing anything exciting. We'll just be doing D-ranks."

"D-ranks?" Ami and Sakura asked at the same time.

"Yep. D-ranks. They're basically chores that people are too lazy to do themselves and instead they hire ninja to do it for them."

"Eh?/Eh?"

"Yep, we're just glorified slaves."

"B-but I thought that we would be heading out of the village and exterminating bandits or performing assassinations, even saving people works." Sakura squeaked out.

"Sadly those are for Genin teams that are much more experienced than us who are fresh out of the Academy."

"So-so you're saying that we'll just be dong errands for people all the time until we're more experienced?" Ami asked.

"Yep. Though apparently it depends on what Kushina-sensei wants us to do since she _is_ our team leader."

Sakura and Ami's faces looked crushed as they found out the harsh reality of what they would be doing as fresh-out-of-the-Academy Genin.

Not a second later the sound of swishing leaves bought his attention to their sensei that had just arrived at the entrance of the training grounds. She took one look at Ami and Sakura before turning to him.

"What happened to those two? They look like found out that the cake is a lie."

"Er, what?"

Kushina-sensei shook her head. "Sorry, meant to ask what was wrong with them."

"Oh... let's just say I enlightened them to a truth of the world."

Kushina-sensei's eyes narrowed before she clapped her hands together drawing the attention of all three of them including the two who still had a crushed expression plastered on their faces.

"Alright team, today we'll be doing our first mission!" Ami and Sakura sunk into depression while Naruto just smiled.

"Hey, hey! Why are you getting all depressed, shouldn't you be happy that you're taking your first steps as ninja by doing your first mission?!"

Sakura and Ami looked up at Kushina-sensei listlessly. It was Sakura who spoke. "Is our mission a D-rank, sensei?"

"Er, yeah it is, why?"

Ami and Sakura sunk into further depression at their sensei's answer.

"Hey come on now, it isn't that bad!"

Ami spoke up this time. "'It isn't that bad?' Aren't we just paid labor for those who are too lazy to do it themselves?"

"Urk. When you put it like that... wait how do you know that?! We made sure that no one knew about what Genins do!" Turning to the only one who was unaffected by her answer, she narrowed her eyes at him. "How did you know Naruto?"

Naruto grinned. "It's not really hard to not see it when you see ninja's with forehead protectors carrying bags of grocery to a house across the street from my apartment. Nor is it hard to not see a Genin weeding the garden in front of the Academy before they're paid from the windows of a classroom."

Kushina-sensei adopted a sheepish expression. "When you put it like that, I guess it's true."

Naruto stretched himself outwards. "Well what 's our mission today Kushina-sensei? Weed a garden? Buy groceries for someone? How about clearing some fields? I'm ready for anything."

Kushina's eyes narrowed again. Naruto began wondering if she did it often because he certainly noticed her doing that a lot since he met her. "None of them, but since you're acting so cocky, I have the perfect mission for you. Come on team let's go."

They all started walking to the Hokage tower, though Ami and Sakura looked like they were dragging their feet. At the tower, they walked in and headed to the third floor, moving towards a door that had 'Mission Office' stamped on it, the foursome all trooped in.

Inside arranged in an upside down U pattern were desks that were each manned by a single Chunin and at the center was Sarutobi Hiruzen puffing away on his pipe. He was once the Third Hokage, but had decided to step down from his fifty year long reign of the village and handed the reigns to the current Hokage, Namikaze Minato. For a such a legendary person to be here so casually in front of him, Naruto couldn't help but feel awed by the aura he gave off. Even though he projected a grandfatherly aura he wasn't fooled but it. He could see that the man had steel hidden underneath his eyes.

When their team stepped in front of him, he greeted their sensei. "Ah, Kushina-san, here to get your first mission for your Genin team?"

"Hai, Sarutobi-sama."

Sarutobi turned towards the three of them. Taking a puff of his pipe he started speaking. "Ah, youth. I remember when I was just a fresh Genin just like you three. I hope you three are looking forward to the missions you'll be performing for the betterment of Konoha."

At this Naruto couldn't help but say, "You mean the chores we'll be assigned to do for the betterment of the lazy people of Konoha?"

Ami and Sakura both let out scandalized squeaks at the casual way he spoke to the former Hokage and the causal disrespect towards the village. Kushina just let out a frustrated sighed.

However instead of getting mad, Sarutobi simple guffawed. When he stopped, he turned to Kushina. "It looks like you'll have your hands full with this one, eh Kushina-san?"

Kushina-sensei just sighed again and nodded tiredly. "We're here to pick up our first mission of the day."

"'first mission of the day?' do you plan to do more than one Kushina-san?"

"Not at all. These two-" Kushina-sensei motioned at Ami and Sakura "will be walking the Inuzuka dogs. While _he_-" motioning at Naruto "will be cleaning the Inuzuka Kennels. Alone."

Sarutobi paused at this. "Now, Kushina-san, surely you aren't planning to make him clean the Inuzuka Kennels alone. You should know how hard that is to fresh Genins and you want him to do it alone?"

Kushina just smiled viciously. "Oh don't worry Sarutobi-sama, I'm sure he'll be _thrilled_ to clean them right _Naruto-san_?" Turning to look at him, her face just screamed bloody murder at him to try and refuse her decision. Naruto gulped. While behind him, Ami and Sakura huddled next to each other in fear. "Understood Kushina-sensei."

She turned back to face Sarutobi with an angelic face plastered on. "Now Sarutobi-sama, the missions if you please?"

Sarutobi coughed, completely aware of what just happened but chose not to say anything. Grabbing two scrolls from the pile next to him, he couldn't help but mutter, "What a harsh punishment for his first mission."

Kushina turned to face her students. "Now then, shall we be off?" Walking out of the door, his students trailing behind her.

Sarutobi just shook his head in pity for the male that had somehow pissed off the Akai Chishio no Habanero barely a day into becoming official Genin.

* * *

When their team arrived at the Inuzuka compound, the team was split with Naruto being handed some cleaning supplies and being pushed into the Kennels that had just been vacated by the dogs that were about to be walked by Ami and Sakura.

Sakura turned to their sensei. "Um sensei, is it really okay that we leave Naruto-san to clean up the Inuzuka Kennels alone?"

Kushina waved off her worries. "No sweat, it's pretty easy to do, the only reason it is considered hard is because no ninja wants that smell on them. It's generally used as a punishment for genin teams that have pissed off their Jounin sensei."

Ami spoke up this time. "What did he do that could piss you off so quickly?"

Kushina barred her teeth at them. "Isn't it obvious? He took away my pleasure in revealing to you two what a D-rank was! And the way he casually disrespected the village in front of me! His actions reflect on me since I'm his sensei!"

Ami and Sakura slowly backed up. Kushina-sensei had broken into a rant about how it was a tradition to break in new Genin by making them do D-rank missions which would kill the dreams of what the Genin originally envisioned ninjas as. When she started saying that Naruto had taken away the pleasure from her, it was only apt that she punish him for it. Especially since his actions as a Genin under her was reflected on her own record.

In a way, both Ami and Sakura were thankful that he told them about it early now. It meant that they were saved from being broken in like a new Genin team.

Kushina then stopped her rant and motioned for them to start walking. As if a pre-arranged signal had been made, the dogs all started running forward at the same time dragging Ami and sakura along with them. Kushina just grinned viciously at the sight before walking after them.

She already had a clone watching Naruto to make sure he was working on cleaning the Kennels.

* * *

Naruto continued scrubbing the Kennels with practiced ease. He didn't know why only he was doing this but he didn't really mind. He had done this kind of stuff often enough that it no longer bothered him. Though he would have to wash his clothes quite thoroughly when he got home. He had no intention of going anywhere smelling like dog shit.

Scrubbing the last stain off the floor, he bought in a clean bucket of water and splashed the whole place before pushing the water out with the broom he had been provided. Looking around once more, he nodded to himself. He was done and it hadn't even been half an hour since he started, grabbing the supplies given to him, he made his way out of the Kennel and headed towards the main compound to report a successful mission.

He didn't notice a puff of smoke go off behind him on a tree that overlooked the dog house he just left.

* * *

Somewhere in the village, Kushina paused in her step as the memory hit her. Ami and Sakura seeing her pause stopped themselves from being pulled by the dogs. "Is something the matter Kushina-sensei?"

Kushina shook her head. "No, it's nothing. Let's just hurry up since it seems that Naruto-san is done with cleaning the Kennels."

"Eh? Already?"

"Yes, it seems like it. Now let's pick up the pace unless we want your teammate to wait for you two?"

Both shook their heads and started getting the dogs to start running again.

* * *

Naruto sat patiently on the clan walls of the Inuzuka compound waiting for his teammates and sensei to show back up from their mission. He had already been paid for his mission and he was quite surprised by the amount he got. 10000 ryo for cleaning the Kennels? Even if one spent their whole life doing D-ranks they could easily get rich. When he said as much to the clan matriarch, she just laughed it off and said, "Think again when the pay is split between your team."

When he asked for her to clarify, she just told him that the amount he received was only half of the original amount, the other half was going to their sensei. Naruto was still confused since that answered nothing, so he resolved to ask Kushina-sensei about what Tsume-sama meant later.

Fifteen minutes later, he heard the sound of dogs approaching. Looking in the direction of the sound he saw his teammates being dragged by the group of dogs that were running full throttle for compound. Getting off his perch he jumped down just as the dogs dragged both his teammates into the compound.

Their sensei walked towards the compound at a leisurely pace. Once she walked past him, he fell into step behind her and they walked the winding path back to the clan house where Ami and Sakura were both handed their money before the matriarch handed Kushina a scroll as well.

Once that was done the foursome made their way out of the compound and headed back into town to grab a quick lunch before heading towards training ground 6. When they arrived, Ami and Sakura collapsed on the ground moaning about the pain.

Naruto glanced at their sensei. Seeing the look directed at her, Kushina said, "They were dragged around by the dogs they were walking and they had a hard time keeping up."

Naruto let out a sound of understanding and waited for his two teammates to recover their breaths. When they did Naruto asked the question on his mind.

"Kushina-sensei, I have a question."

"Oh? What is it?"

"When I told Tsume-sama that one could get rich from doing D-ranks alone, she said to think again when the money was split. When I asked further, she said that the money I got was only half the original amount, the other half going to you. What did she mean."

Ami and Sakura looked at their sensei at this. The conversation clearly catching their interest.

Kushina sighed. "Well I was hoping that you wouldn't notice so early, but I guess I'll have to explain. Now what do you know about Jounin's?"

Sakura raised her hand. Kushina nodded at her. "They're ninja that have distinguished themselves from the regular force of Chunin and Genin. There skills are said to be able to trump over thirty Genin at the same time or ten Chunin at the same time."

Kushina nodded again. "That sounds about right, now do you know what Jounin sensei's are?"

Ami spoke up this time. "Aren't they Jounins, only they have teams instead?"

"Right again, now tell me what the difference between them is?"

Sakura spoke up again."Is it because one has a Genin team and the other doesn't?

"Close but think deeper."

This time Naruto spoke up. "Jounins regularly go on high ranking missions, but Jounin sensei's don't have the time for that since they lead Genin teams."

Kushina nodded happily. "That is exactly right. As Jounin sensei, we don't have the time to complete higher ranking missions since we have Genin teams to look after. So to make up for the lack of income from being a Jounin sensei, we are given a part of the Genin's pay."

Ami immediately cried out, "But that isn't fair! You didn't do anything on the mission except watch us walk the dogs!" Her hand smacked against her mouth after that outburst. Fearfully glancing up at their sensei, she was surprised to see that she didn't look mad.

Kushina continued smiling. "Of course it isn't fair. We're ninja, since when were we fair?"

All three of them knew what that smile meant, even though it had only been a day since they met their sensei, they knew that was she furious after what Ami had blurted out.

"Now do you know the other responsibility of a Jounin sensei is besides leading a team?"

All three of them shook their heads.

"The answer is that they'll teach the teams they lead!"

"Eh?" Three voices echoed across the clearing of the training ground.

"Erm, sensei, haven't we learned everything we needed to know at the Academy?"

"Yea, sensei. What more is there to teach?"

Naruto stayed silent since he had an inkling as to where this was going.

Kushina just started laughing. In the clearing with two confused females and one contemplative male, they watched as their sensei's laughter slowly approached hysteria. Eventually she stopped. "Ah I'm sorry about that, it was just so funny that you thought you had learned everything you needed to know. Tell me have you learned how to shoot fireballs? Summon lightning? Raise the earth? Cut down trees with a wave of a sword? Anything?"

At their silent responses, she continued speaking. "You understand? The Genin exam was merely an exam to see who had the potential to be ninja. The real Genin exam was to see if they could function as a team. If they could then they would be taught more advanced stuff than what is taught at the Academy. Did you think that Konoha would teach _Academy_ students how to shoot fireballs or summon lightning when they could just try to show it off and accidentally kill someone? No, the Academy just taught you some of the basic stuff you need to know as shinobi. The truly complicated stuff is left for the Jounin sensei to decide. Do you understand?"

Looking at her three students who all had contemplative expressions on their faces, Kushina couldn't help but liken it to when she had first started training Mito and had to explain one complicated concept after another to her that she didn't understand.

Naruto eventually spoke up breaking the stupor that Ami and Sakura were in. "Does this mean that you'll be training us now?" At Naruto's question, Ami and Sakura's gaze landed on Kushina.

"That's right but we'll get to that later. For now we'll be going over what I saw yesterday during your Genin exam."

Naruto plopped down on the ground as he was starting to grow tired of standing like an idiot when two of his teammates were still sitting on the ground. Kushina did the same, but in a much more graceful manner.

"Now, Ami you started things off by engaging my clone in taijutsu battle and I'll give you points on taking the initiative. Sakura as well, since you immediately followed up hr attack by throwing shuriken at me and when that failed you only hesitated for a bit before moving to engage me as well. From what I had observed from you two, I was most worried about both your team dynamics since both of you seemed to feel animosity towards each other. Yet you were still able to put aside your differences to work together to bring down a common goal. Seeing you two act like best friends now, I can't help but wonder if that was an act to get me to let my guard down."

Ami and Sakura flushed at the same time but made no move to mention that they did indeed feel animosity towards each other before Naruto ordered them to reconcile. That's right, ordered, even though he didn't say it explicitly, it was phrased as one.

Kushina then turned to Naruto. "You on the other hand chose to observe as your teammates engaged my clone in taijutsu. Why was that? As a team you should've moved in together but only Ami and Sakura did so, why didn't you?"

Pinned by gazes of his sensei and teammates, he admitted out loud, "It was because I was looking for a possible opening that your clone might give during the melee that would allow me to land a clean hit on you."

Kushina narrowed her eyes before asking. "So you did not once think of cooperating with Ami or Sakura even though they both engaged me together in taijutsu?"

"Hm..., not really?"

Ami and Sakura gasped at his words. He was admitting outright that he didn't see them as teammates. Both girls got up to prepare to pummel him for forcing them to become friends but at the same time using them but both were stopped by Kushina who said one word, "Stop.", Staring at Naruto again, she asked, "Can you tell me why you didn't even consider it?"

"Hm... it's not that I didn't even consider it but more like I had no clue how to react. Originally I was going drag both of them away to form a plan where we could land a clean hit on you together, but Ami-san jumped in before I could stop her and Sakura-san joined her before I could stop her as well. So I just waited to see if I could find an opening to land my own hit before I would assist them in landing their own hits since I would've technically already passed, but nothing you said prevented me from helping them."

"You're lying! You're just saying that so we don't get mad at you!" Ami cried out with anger in her eyes. Next to her Sakura looked at him in the same way but with a hint of betrayal hidden behind it.

Their sensei didn't say anything, just observing him. Eventually she spoke up. "Ami-san, he is not lying."

Naruto's eyes widened in surprise at that. While he knew he wasn't lying, he didn't think anyone would believe him. Ami and Sakura turned to face their sensei.

"How do you know that sensei?" Ami asked.

"Because I can tell when someone is lying. All Jounin can sense when someone is lying to a certain extent after all. That's how I know Naruto-san here isn't lying."

Ami didn't looked appeased but she stopped glaring at Naruto while Sakura let out a sigh of relief.

Kushina drew their attention back to her. "Now that we have cleared up that misunderstanding. Let's move on. Naruto-san after that, what did you think? Because I noticed you had taken out those gloves of yours and were doing something with the ninja wires concealed inside-"

"Steel threads" Naruto interrupted.

Kushina blinked owlishly. "Excuse me?"

"They're called Steel threads. Not wires."

"I dont see the difference..."

"My Steel threads are much more dangerous than ninja wire. I feel offended that you would even compare them like that. Would you like it if I likened _your_ dodging to a whore that was drunk?"

Ami and Sakura gasped at what Naruto had just said to their sensei.

Kushina narrowed her gaze at Naruto and directed large dose of Killing Intent into it.

Naruto started shivered uncomfortably at the feeling that he got from the look on their sensei's face but held his ground. He wouldn't allow _anyone_ to make fun of his Steel threads that he painstakingly trained to his current level. Mistaking them for ninja wires was just as bad.

Eventually Kushina let up on her Killing Intent. It seemed he was extremely stubborn about this. "Very well... your _Steel threads_... that were concealed in your gloves. You were doing something with them before you called for Ami-san and Sakura-san to disengage. What was it?"

"Oh that? What I did when I caught you. Laying the trap down." Naruto answered flippantly completely fine now that the KI from their sensei had disappeared.

"And if that was the case, why did you not continue laying the trap? Why did you suddenly call for Ami-san and Sakura-san to stop and head over to you?"

Ami and Sakura looked intrigued at this.

"Ah... yea that... my Steel threads were running out and so I had to call them to tell them to herd you closer to me so that I could decrease the size of the trap so that I wouldn't run out."

"... that's it? The only reason you called for them to disengage was because you were _running out_ of Steel threads?"

Ami, Sakura and their sensei stared at him in disbelief.

"Of course, my Steel threads aren't unlimited. I can only fit so much into my gloves before it takes up too much room to be efficient."

Kushina just sighed to herself. "Okay, so you were running out of your Steel threads, so you called for them to disengage and herd my clone closer towards your position so you could decrease the size of the trap. If you didn't run out, how large would it be?"

"If I had enough Steel thread to complete my original trap, it would have be large enough to cover the whole clearing we're in."

All three of the females looked at the clearing they were in. It wasn't small but the size of it wasn't anything to joke about either. Then they remembered how large the modified version was."And how long would it take for you to set it up?"

"Uhh, about 15 minutes? The only reason I needed 7 minutes when we caught your clone was because I had already laid the groundwork for it and just needed to pull them closer together while adding some finishing touches to it since the size was drastically reduced."

"Okay... we'll talk more on your technique later. For now, let's get back to what we were originally going over. Now like I said, Ami-san and Sakura-san both gain points for working together and putting aside their differences. Naruto-san loses points for not moving together with you two."

Ami looked smug at this and even Sakura looked proud. But sensei's next words brought their world crashing down. "However I'll have to take points off from both of you though for engaging me so foolishly in taijutsu."

Ami blurted out, "Why?" , Even Sakura wanted to know from the look on her face. Naruto didn't really care.

"It's because despite knowing that I was a Jounin, both of you foolishly thought that you could engage me in taijutsu. At least with Naruto-san, he didn't choose to attack because he was looking for an opening he could exploit. You two engaged a superior opponent in a taijutsu battle. Do I need to explain why that is a foolish idea?"

Evidently she didn't because Ami and Sakura understood the point she was trying to make. If they had done that against an enemy ninja, they would've been immediately killed.

"Now while what you didn't wrong since if you were up against an opponent just a bit stronger then you, you might've won with such a tactic, but from now on, never engage a superior opponent in taijutsu unless you're 100% sure you can defeat them."

Ami and Sakura looked properly chastised at this.

"After that when Naruto-san got both of you to disengage, you three foolishly stayed in place while formulating your plan in the same clearing as the clone no less who could've heard your plan and countered it, if that was up against enemy ninja, you would've been killed ten times over. Always remember, a ninja that is not moving is a dead ninja."

Again Ami and Sakura looked chastised and even Naruto looked embarrassed.

"The part after that while marginally better still had plenty of mistakes. Even though my clone didn't hear your plan, it could definitely see that both of you were trying extremely hard in herding it to a specific area. An enemy ninja would've noticed and immediately avoided the area making your trap useless, but since this was only a test, the allowed itself to be herded towards the area. After that, the execution was flawless. Once the clone was in the designated area, the trap had started but at the same time the exits in all directions were cut off and the only way out was through the exits that were behind Ami-san and Sakura-san. You had effectively trapped your opponent, but against an experienced ninja, you must always be ready to prevent them from them escaping through the air or underground-"

"Ah, they wouldn't have been able to go underground since my Steel threads had blocked off all exits inside the ground."

"Okay, make sure that the exit in the sky is also blocked off and prevent them from making an exit of their own. Other than those points that I made, you displayed team cohesion that was expected from a fresh Genin team. Now tell me, how do you think you could've improved?"

No one said anything. All three of them glancing at each other waiting for one another to saying something.

"I could try to improve the speed of my Steel threads so that my opponent would have less time to to find a way to avoid my trap?"

"A good idea, but not exactly what I'm looking for."

Sakura spoke up next. "Two of us engage you in taijutsu while the other provides support?"

"Better but no."

It was Ami who got the correct answer. "We use ninjutsu and genjutsu as well as taijutsu?"

"That's right! Throughout the entire fight, not one of you used the Clone technique to try and confuse my clone, nor did any of you try to put my clone under a genjutsu. If you had tried, I'm sure all three of would've been able to land a clean hit on my clone without such a trap. After all that clone was reacting like a Chunin instead of a Jounin.

All three of them let out sounds of surprise and embarrassment. None of them remembered to use ninjutsu or genjutsu at all, and the sad thing was that Naruto also had medical ninjutsu as well. If necessary, he could've used his chakra scalpels that he wasn't really good at. But he forgot all about it since he didn't know how to react to the situation he was in.

"Now I'm sure I gave you all a lot to think about, but for now we still have training to do today." Kushina stood up and looked at the sun. "Right now it's about two in the afternoon. We have four hours before sundown. So let's try this again. This time your objective is to land as many hits as you can onto me using everything you have. But be careful, this time I will also attack back instead of dodging."

After she said that a feral grin appeared on her face and everything flew into chaos as Team 6 was beaten into the ground while only putting up a token resistance.

Three hours later and Team 6 found themselves on the grounds of training ground six moaning in all manners of pain. Their sensei stood over them with a smile on her face that shined. "Ah. Teaching is so much fun, right team?"

All she got in response were groans. Kushina looked up again. "Well it looks like the sun is setting soon, so how about we call it a day hm? Meet here at the same time tomorrow." More groans. "Well Ja ne~" with a sound of rustling leaves, their sensei was gone.

Naruto slowly sat up. "Ugh, it hurts so much..."

Ami and Sakura struggled to sit up. "Who knew that sensei was such a devil?"

Sakura nodded rapidly before she stopped as her neck started hurting.

Naruto went through two hand seals before his hands started glowing green. Moving his hands towards his bruised and sore body, he slowly healed himself until he could only feel a dull ache from physical exhaustion.

Ami and Sakura watched enviously as Naruto slowly healed himself of all the bruises and sores he had while they continued to suffer. They were understandably surprised though when after he finished healing himself, he started healing Sakura's injuries.

"Hey! Why're you healing her first?" Ami cried out from where she was struggling to sit up.

"Well Sakura-san here seems like she's ready to faint any moment, so she obviously takes priority and seeing as you still have the energy to talk so loudly, I guess you're fine?"

Sakura giggled at that. Ami just glared at her causing her to shrink into herself instinctively. Naruto saw this and sighed. Getting up, he moved over to Ami and pulled her closer to Sakura.

"Now I'm going to start healing both of you at the same time so that we don't have a certain someone complaining, but it'll take longer since I'll have to split my concentration." Ami glared daggers at Naruto who ignored it.

They stayed silent as Naruto continued his work in slowly healing their tired body. It was broken by Ami. "Sorry for glaring at you like that Sakura, I'm tired and cranky right now."

Sakura shook her head. "No, you don't need to apologize. I understand. I'm tried and cranky as well. Though I'm feeling much better now that Naruto-san is healing me."

Ami sat up from where she had laid down. "Experimentally moving her arms which Naruto had just finished healing, she couldn't help but say, "Wow, you're right. I do feel better, though it does ache a bit."

"Of course. This technique heals wounds, not tiredness." Naruto retorted.

"But still, Naruto-san is amazing. You managed to last longer than both of us together against sensei, and now you're healing us with a technique that is considered A-rank. It makes me feel useless." Sakura muttered out.

Naruto frowned, "I'm nothing amazing, I can only use the Shosen no jutsu because I was apprenticed for a year under a medical nin that drilled it into me and made sure I could perform it perfectly. Compared to what anyone from Team 7 or 8, even Team 10 knows. I'm nothing compared to them."

Ami snorted at this. "Heh, what were you expecting? Those people are all from clans. They've been trained since they could walk. As opposed to us who only started learning when we were what? Seven years old? I hear that they start teaching them as soon as they're a year old. They have at least six years of experience."

"Still, it doesn't sit well with me that someone my own age is so much better than me that they don't even notice me who is struggling to reach his level."

"Huh. It sounds like you have a goal now huh? To become an equal to those children from clans."

"Eh?"

"Ami-san is right Naruto-san, yesterday when you introduced yourself, you said that you had no idea what your goal as a ninja was. Now it seems that you have a goal of becoming as strong as those people from the clans." Sakura piped in.

Naruto thought about it. "Huh... it seems you're right. It looks like I've found a goal for the future." Naruto then turned to Ami, "I guess that means that you're the only one left without a goal huh?"

Ami snorted. "I don't need one. But if you're going to say it like that, then I guess my goal is to become stronger then you. How does that sound huh?"

Naruto smirked. "Setting quite the impossible goal for yourself huh?" Ami glared at Naruto from where she sat. Naruto then turned to Sakura.

"What about you Sakura-san? Your goal is closest out of all of us."

"Eh?" Sakura looked at Naruto in confusion.

"Well, you know. You said your goal was to move out of your family home and live by yourself right? Doesn't this technically mean you're the closest since the moment you became a ninja you're considered an adult, you could technically decide to live on your own now right?"

"...is that so? I... didn't know... that." Sakura whispered.

"Well, that's probably because you live with your parents. Most orphans would've already started living alone when they turned ten or so since they would've found a job that lets them make money to rent an apartment with a fellow orphan or they could try and find a cheap apartment in the slums, but that isn't recommended because that place is dangerous even for ninja."

"Neh, Naruto-san."

"Hm?"

"How do you know all of this?"

"What?"

"I mean how do you know so much about this stuff? I mean I didn't know any of the stuff you said until you told me, so how do you know...?"

"Now that I think about it, how did you even learn to use your steel threads? I don't think anyone in Konoha used such a thing. I know that some use wires for traps but not in the way you do it? Who taught you that unless you're saying you invented it yourself?"

Naruto flushed red for some reason at what Ami just asked before shaking his head. "Like I said, I'm an orphan, so from a young age I had to be careful with how I spent my money. Sometimes I didn't have enough money for a month since the orphan stipend was delayed, so I had to go from place to place looking for any sort of odd job to pay for rent and all that. What I told you were simply stuff I picked up on while doing those odd jobs. As for my Steel threads, I won't say that I invented it myself. But the basis for it, I was taught by some people close to where I live and I just applied it to ninja wire, but they were too easily broken, so I had to have Steel threads custom made from someone I once performed an odd job for. That's why I'm touchy whenever someone compares my Steel threads to ninja wire. Steel threads are the evolution of ninja wire!"

When he faced Sakura and Ami again, they looked both looked at him with something akin to admiration. Flushing in embarrassment at being stared at so intensely, he asked, "What?"

Ami and Sakura shook their heads. Eventually Ami spoke up. "Wow, just wow. I don't know what to say. But just wow."

"Wow, Naruto-san, you're so independent and mature!"

Naruto awkwardly scratched the back of his head. "Well an orphan has to mature quickly or else they'll find themselves living on the street or in the slums."

Naruto glanced upwards and noticed that the sun was already setting. "Dammit, look at the time! The sun's already setting!"

Ami and Sakura looked up as well and as if they finally noticed the time, they both jumped to their feet.

"Oh man! I didn't tell my parents I would be coming home late!" Ami cried out.

"My parents probably aren't home yet, but I have to go home to make dinner for them!" Sakura fretted.

Naruto raised an eyebrow at Sakura's choice of words but didn't pay it any mind. "Well you two better head home quick. As for me, I'm going to grab some dinner for myself before I go home."

"Yea yea, see you tomorrow Naruto! Sakura!" Ami ran out of the training grounds.

Sakura turned to Naruto and bowed. "See you tomorrow as well Naruto-san.", then she too ran out of the training grounds as well.

Leaving Naruto in the darkness that was slowly encroaching on the training grounds. "So... my goal is to become stronger than the children from the clans huh? Isn't that too high of a goal? What was I even thinking..." Clenching his fist tightly, Naruto remembered clearly when Namikaze Menma first saw him practicing with his newly created Steel threads. At the time he had gotten arrogant thinking that he could beat anyone with his Steel threads and had foolishly challenged Namikaze Menma to a match expecting an easy win. How wrong he was. In the face of the monster that was Namikaze Menma. Nothing mattered.

Slowly walking forward, Naruto walked into the night life of Konoha, intent on getting some dinner before he headed home and maybe something more.


End file.
